Improved safety-guaed foe mining-shafts



@uiten tait-s getint @frn Letters Patent No. 79,07,dated June 23, 1868.

` IMPROVED SAFETY-GUARD `EUR MINING-SEAFTS.

vtitte Stimme maar tu in instituten @that zum making nrt nf hun site.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAK` CONCERN:v y i Be itknown that I, E. O. LEERMO, of Gold Hilf, in the county of Story, and Stateof Nevada, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Safety-Guard for hfIining-Shafts;A 'and I do hereby declare that the fol-lowing is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, which will enableothers skilled in the art to makehnd use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification.

The nature of my invention 'relates to improvements in safety-guards, to be attached to mining-shafts, at the top of the same, hto prevent the trucks from being accidentally run into them when the cage is not in the proper position to receive them; and it'consists in the arrangement, in a transverse dove-tail groove in the rail, a short distance from the mouth of the shaft, of a sliding bar, the upper surface of whichprojects above the top of the rait sudiciently to block the wheel of a car when it is moved in the right position, which sliding bar is caused to slide in front of the wheels of the car to block it by th'e action of aspring when thecage is not ready to receive the car, and which is drawn away from before the said car-Wheel by the action of a lever, which is actuated by the cage whenthe latterris moved into the right position to receive the car, whereby the car is allowed to run on to the said cage, as will be more fully described on reference to the accompanying drawings, whereini Figure 1 represents a side elevation of my improved apparatus applied to the end of a railroad-track, communicating with a mining-shaft.

Figure 2 shows a' plan view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts. i

A represents one of the rails of a railroad-track terminating at .the mouth of a mining-shaft.

Band B are cross-ties of the same, and are extended upon one side ot' the track, and united at the ends of the said extensions by the short sill C,

D represents a sliding bar having one end fitted to work ina dove-tail groove across the face of the rail, as shown at a. The upper face of the slide projects above the face of the rail,`and serves as a stop or block for the Wheel of a car.

b represents notch in one of the inclined faces of the end of the slide, into which the ange of the carwheel catches, and prevents the slide from being moved while it is so locked by the car-wheel, as it may otherwise, by accident, sometimes happen.

To the rear end of the slide D a right-angled lever, E, is connected. The end of the said lever enters an elongated slot through the slide, and is borne against the end wall` of the slot next tothe rail by the spring E', which is secured to the said right-angled lever, near the axis of the same, and which enters the slot in the slide D, and bears against the other end `wall of the said slot.

The said right-angled lever is connected byits other arm to a connecting-rod, F, which is jointed to a spring-buffer, H, projecting over theledge of the mining-shaft in a manner to be actuated against the action of the springK, which has a constant tendency to force the same over the said ledge of theshaft. The end of thc buler is provided with vertical extensions, which are curved from the end inward, presenting inclined planes from above or below to the action of the cage when moving in either direction. The movement of the said huilers in either direction communicates motion. to the lslide D, through the right-angled llever E, as will be readily understood. i Y A i i When the cage has been raised to the level of the railroad-track, it will bear against the most forward pro; jecting part of the buifer, which is also on a line with the rail, and force the buffer back, which action will withdraw the slide D from before thefront of the wheel, and permit the car to be moved on to the cage to be lowered down the shaft. If the ange of the Wheel of the car happens to be locked iu the notch of the slide D, and thereby prevents the said slide from moving away from the front of the wheel, thespring E will yield against the action of the lever E, whereby breakage will be avoided, and it will draw back the slide D after the car has been moved back, so as to disconncctthe flange from the said notch in the slide.

` If, when the cage has beernraised up against the bufer, and has moved the slide away from the front of` the car, and the can has been moved forward toward the cage, by any accident the saidlcage is moved still further up past the b'cr, or moved down again,'the spring K will immediately force the bu'er out and thereby throw the slide D in again before -the hind wheel has passed beyond the said slide, thereby preventing thecar from running into the shaft.

C represents a guard for the buffer.l Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire oo secureby Letters Patent, is

1. The combination, with a railroad-trackan thecage of a miningfshaft, of the automatic safety-guardattachment, substantially as and for 'the purposedescribed.

2. The combination of the spring-buffer H, spring-lever E, and slide D, substantinly as ami for the purpose described: A

' i E. o. LEnRMo- Witnesesz W. N. HALL, S. M. HUNT. 

